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Legends of the Brigade
Legends of the Brigade was a story written by and , detailing the history, members, and missions of the Hunters' Brigade. However, it was never completed, as it was scrapped before its second chapter could be written. Story Prologue The Po-Matoran ran frantically down a damp and shadowed alleyway in the southern district of Trita Nui. It was the dead of night, and while at most places in the city would still be active, this area was not. Running through the alleys like this, he ran the risk of of running into and being killed by Death Breeders, but that wasn't his main worry this night. Sweat was beading down his face, and his heart felt like it was in his throat, he was in the clutches of total fear. He looked over his shoulder every few seconds, convinced that he would see the being who was hunting him. His orange eyes pierced the shadows of the night, offereing a little light in the pitch darkness, but it also gave away his possition to criminals or his stalker. His tan foot squeltched in a puddle of filthy water, sending ripples through it. A lump was forming in his throat, and his muscels ached from running across about half of the district. He was running so fast, he barely noticed the overturned thash can in front of him, until he tripped on it that is. Muttering foul curses under his breath, he heaved himself upright. He started to run, but fell back again, pain racing through his leg. He looked at his leg, and realised that he had badly twisted his ankle when he fell. Oh no, he thought in shock and terror, for he knew that with this new injury, his speed to escape from his hunter would be greatly decreased. Still, he rose, and started running as fast as he could with his hurt ankle. Eventualy, he fell face-foreward once again, cracking his Mask on impact with the hard ground. When he rose his head, he saw a silver, clawed foot in front of his face. He was about to scream, but the foot hit his head, hard, and sent him flying several yards back, and crashing into a dumpster. He groaned, coughed up a glob of blood, and looked up. There, his hunter stood, spinning a blaster around his hand, his blood red eyes fixated on the Matoran. Quick as lightning, the being grabbed the unfortunate Po-Matoran, and slammed him against the wall, cracking it, and his back. The Matoran, half dead as he was, could hear the being talking to him, his cold breath washing over his face. "Well, you certainly gave me enough of a chase, but no matter, I shall collect my reward from the Poisoners soon enough." The being flung the Matoran onto the ground, and an audable cracking ''noise could be heard. The Matoran painfully turned over so he could see his hunter. "Please, don't kill me, I'm worth more alive!" The bounty hunter chuckled softly. "It's a small difference. Besides, anyone who gives me so much trouble on a hunt earns death." The Matoran of Stone coughed, and gasped for air. "your kind don't just kill us, you butcher us." The being aimed his blaster at the Matoran's head. "You call it butchery. I call it killing with style." With that said, the being pulled the trigger on his blaster, sending a bullet right through the Matoran's head, instantly killing him. The Po-Matoran's body fell to the ground, a gaping hole in his head. A puddle of blood started to form behind it. "Lethal" picked up the body of the slain Matoran, and threw it over his shoulder. He would take it to the northeastern district, Poisoner territory and headquarters, and collect his full pay of two thousand widgets. ''Ah, another completed hunt, another dead Matoran. ---- "Lethal" wakled through the large, iron doors of the Brigade's headquarters on Xia. Five days had past since he killed the Po-Matoran, and it had taken four of those days to get back to Xia. He walked through a long, winding hall that led to the throne room. He eventualy reached it, and sat down on the metal throne, with the symbol of the Hunters' Brigade imprinted on it. He closed his eyes to get as much rest as he could before he would be sent on his next hunt, which would not be very long. He was awakened minutes later by the sound of his door creaking open. In stepped a lean, muscular black and grey being, with on arm and one leg that was robotic. Witout even openening his eyes, "Lethal" knew who it was. "Hello, "Vizor"." "Vizor" bowed to his leader. "Sir, a member of the Empire of Shadows has requested an audiance with you in Trita Nui, he says he has a private mission for you." "Lethal" sighed, and rose from his throne. "Why couldn't they have asked me when I was on ''Trita Nui mere days ago? Very well, I'll be leaving right away." "Vizor" nodded, and walked out. "Lethal" sighed. He hated the Empire, but they always made excelent payment for a completed mission. ''How can the fools know that we will soon be at war with them? ---- "Lethal" stood at the peir of the island, watching as Klimeck loaded his supplies on his speedboat. "Be careful with those, you lummox, those are fragile and expensive." Klimeck nodded stupidly. "Okay boss." "Lethal" tapped his foot on the timber of the pier. He would call Klimeck and idiot, but that would be an insult to idiots everywhere. He had a very strange personality. Of corse, he was intent on killing, death, and all those things, but he one very strange thing about him: he was terrorfied ''of water. Eventualy, the large being finished loading the boat, and stepped aside, careful not to fall into the water. "Lethal", without even looking at Klimeck, stepped into the boat, and activated the motor, and in less than six seconds, was speeding away from the island at a half a mio an hour. While he drove, he thought of his days of endless study of the complete history of the Brigade. Flashbacks ran through his head, as he remembered... Chapter 1 A lone warrior strode through the darkness. His armor was cracked, and pitted from numerous battles. But that was of no concern to this being. As he walked towards a mountain ledge that overlooked the land below him, he could not help but wonder how his life had came to this. Suddenly he heard a movement. Something was not right. The figure turned around and raised his sword, and in an instant, flames danced on its surface. He waited several seconds before speaking. "Don't play games with me, hunters. I know who you are, and I know what you intend to do to me. But believe me when I say, I'm not going down without a fight." Time ticked by for nearly a minute before one of the most atrocious sounds imaginable echoed on the winds of the night. It was the sound of laughter. Suddenly, two armored beings emerged from their hiding spots, still chuckling all the while. Both were well-equipped and unique in appearance. The warrior on the left spoke up. "If you know who we are, and know what we will do to you, then why not give up now? We merely want to earn the humble profits of a long hunt. Prolonging the process of our payment-giving will only result in a more gruesome death for you, Toa, or would you prefer us to use your real name?" The Toa snarled and leaped of the cliff ledge, diving off with both elegance and finesse. One of the hunters chuckled softly. "Cyborg, would you do the honors of eliminating our target?" Cyborg laughed, his voice a mixed gurgle of a living being and a machine. "Of course, Claaw." With that, Cyborg raised his robotic left arm, and tampered with a gadget inbuilt onto its surface. When he was done, he aimed his arm at the ledge the Toa had once been standing on, and fired with the accuracy natural only to a machine. Rock shattered in seconds, and descended down the mountain slope, and crashing into a nearby village below. As the faint screams of Matoran raised at the sight of the carnage, Claaw walked towards what was left of the mountain ledge and looked over it. He snarled viciously. Cybrog looked up. "Something wrong?" Claaw nodded. "That Toa succeeded in avoiding the rockslide. He's probably already made his way off into the jungle of this backwater island." Cyborg raised his weapon. "Should we pursue?" Claaw smiled. "No, we'll return to the meeting place. If my calculations are correct, the Toa will head to the shoreline of this island to purchase a boat to get off this land. But the thing is, do you know what beaches tend to have in high abundance?" Cyborg titled his head in confusion. "Sand." With that, Cybrog smiled wickedly, and turned with Claaw to return to their meeting place. ---- The Toa warrior panted inconstantly. His armor had been ruined by the rock avalanche caused by his hunters, and he had only just managed to survive. He had then escape into the thick, swamp-like jungle, hoping to loose his pursuers in the thick undergrowth. The Toa swiped frequently at parts of his body in annoyance as he ran, trying to squash insectoid Rahi that bit into his armor. His feet squelched uncomfortably in the mud of the jungle, and each attempt to pull his legs out of it only drained him of more energy. Finally he arrived at the shoreline, and sighed in relief. The hunters had obviously not covered this area of the island, as there was neither a trace of havoc in the region, nor a mercenary presence. He sat on the sandy shoreline of the island and looked around. Several huts decorated the coast, along with a long pier that stretched out into the waters, with several docked vessels floating nearby it. Whilst a small area on this secluded island, this village served as the land's primary trade center, and was inhabited mainly by Ga-Matoran. The Toa decided that if he bought a boat now with what little currency he had left, he could avoid being targeted by his enemies for at least three months. He got to his feet and trudged towards the nearby town, until the ground suddenly, and violently shook. ''Oh no, he thought to himself. Not now. Please, not now. His thoughts did little to change the situation, and soon the entire ground was shaking in the style of a miniature earthquake. The Toa fell to the ground, still in shock. No! This can't be happening!" With that, the sand in front of him exploded upwards, and a towering figure took form. Sand particles flew in every direction until the being taking shape solidified into his natural form. When the Toa's gaze met his opponent's, it was all he could do to say his name. "Sand Storm." The behemoth grinned as two more figures emerged from the shadows to stand beside him. One was a female Agori hunter adorned in green armor named Venifer, the other was a white-armored brute known as Executioner. Both were different, yet similar characters. Venifer had joined the Brigade after being somehow teleported from her native planet of Bara Magna, along with several other warriors native to her world, to the Matoran Universe. Upon joining the Brigade, Venifer claimed to have been banished from her original tribe for committing an undisclosed crime. The other bounty hunter, Executioner, had been recruited several centuries before Venifer on Stelt, having been banished from his society from taking up the role of an assassin. He was said to be the very last of his kind, telling the Brigade's original leader that his land had been consumed by living flames. Now it was said his homeland was nothing more the a barren wasteland. When Venifer and Executioner joined Sand Storm by his side, they pointed their weapons to the Toa's head, prompting him to dive for his Toa tool. Venifer was quicker, however, and planted her foot on the blade. "Sorry, Cavdev, but we're not in the mood for a fight." Cavdev stared at them, his eyes concealing none of his fear. Executioner strode up to the Toa of Fire, and pointed his gun at his head. "This is nothing personal, just to let you know, it's just business." Once Executioner's words had sunk in to Cavdev's head, he pulled the trigger on his gun, and Cavdev vision blurred as he fell into the void of death. ---- Cyborg and Claaw stood near their vessel, waiting for Sand Storm and the others to return. Cyborg had long since gotten bored, and he had spent the last few minutes shooting at any unfortunate Rahi that had crossed his path. Eventually, he roared in boredom. "How much longer will it take them? This was supposed to be am easy mission for easy payment. Now we've spent nearly three days tracking Cavdev down, and now its taking even longer to kill him? Why do we even bother with these kinds of missions these days? Ever since Lethal took over the Brigade, we've been working extra hard to get extra, unneeded pay." "Your saying that's a bad thing?" said Claaw, sarcastically. "No, of course not," snapped Cyborg. "I'm simply saying that since Lethal took control, he's been trying to make us compete with the likes of the Dark Hunters, who have now easily surpassed us in the bounty hunting business. Perhaps its about time we accept that our golden age is long since over." "If we did that, then where would the Brigade be now?" said the voice Cyborg recognized as belonging to Sand Storm. Claaw and Cyborg turned to face the giant. "Did you deal with him?" asked Claaw. Sand Storm nodded, and chucked a few pieces of Cavdev's armor onto the ground. "He was no trouble," answered Executioner. "But now we must depart. I'm sure our employer will be eager to learn of our victory." As silently as they arrived, the hunters departed, leaving behind an island whose inhabitants would spend the rest of their days wondering what form of monsters could kill a Toa in such a brutal way. ---- Far away, on a distant, long forgotten island, a lone being sat on his throne, his bloodred eyes piercing the shadows. Eventually, a soldier entered his master's throne room, bringing forth the news he had been sent to deliver. "Mater Sovnoron, forgive me for interrupting your meditations, but the Brigade members you hired have returned." "Good," whispered Sovnoron. "Bring them through." The servant nodded, and set about his task. An hour passed before the door opened again, flooding dark light into Sovnoron's chamber. In came the bounty hunters, there armor gleaming dully in the light. Sovnoron's mouth curved into smile, a bizarre expression for one such as him. "Love what you've done with the place," said Claaw, sarcastically. Venifer shot him a striking glance, indicating he show proper respect to their employer. Claaw grunted. Venifer was famous within the Hunters' Brigade for being very talented at getting along with her employers, and using that talent to negotiate higher payment fees for her skills. Sovnoron titled his head, making him look like some strange Rahi trying to understand Claaw's remark. Finally, he spoke. "Did you kill Cavdev? I hope you have. Dead enemies tend to make less trouble than live ones." Executioner nodded. "We did indeed. He was not a problem." Sovnoron leaned into the back of his throne, disguising him in shadows. "Excellent. Cavdev was a troublesome foe who deserved a painful death. At least he won't bother me, or my master, any longer. He possessed information that should not be known to others." "Very well. May we receive our payment now?" asked Sand Storm. "We do need to be on our way in case we're hired for another mission." Sovnoron smiled. "Of course you may. Guard, take them to the treasury." The servant nodded, and without muttering a word, led the bounty hunters out of the room. When the doors were closed, Sovnoron chuckled lightly. How ironic, he thought. The most powerful group of killers in this universe have just murdered the only being in all of reality who could of stopped the darkness yet to come. Now, without a doubt, the all-powerful members of the Hunters' Brigade have just signed off the death sentence for this entire universe. As the bounty hunters departed and collected their reward, perhaps, if they had not been so consumed in their greed, they would have heard the sinister sound of Sovnoron's laughter echo throughout his fortress.